Social scientists warn that adult men failing to reach key milestones are bad for society
One social scientist and author told CNN he is concerned about the number of men in their 30s and 40s who are not buying homes or starting families.
Richard Reeves, author of “Boys and Men,” spoke to CNN host Michael Smerconish about the social dynamics brewing in the United States, in which a large proportion of men are not living up to the standards of their parents That standard of adulthood includes owning a home or having children.
Commenting on the recent wall, Reeves told Smerconish: “It represents a change, an important change, and the fact that these milestones are not just reached later, but for so many people Say, they haven’t reached it at all.
“It seems now that the economic and social prospects of young people are the big issues we face,” he continued.
The pandemic is a modern civil rights challenge in America
Author Richard Reeves told CNN that more and more men in the United States are failing to reach traditional milestones of adulthood. (Screenshot/CNN)
Reeves cited the most alarming data he’s seen, saying: “Yes, to me, the fact is that men in their 30s and 40s now don’t have college degrees, and half of them don’t have children at home. ”.
Levis, who is also president of the National Institute on Boys and Men, noted that the new dynamic, in which men are no longer waiting until later to reach these milestones, but rather not reaching them at all, is concerning.
“Spending more time getting an education, taking time to start a family, maybe settling yourself down financially — that’s arguably a good thing, but that’s not what’s happening right now. What’s happening right now is, for a lot of people Humanly speaking, these milestones have not been achieved.
Elsewhere, he said, “Honestly, Michael, I wasn’t worried about this delay in the past. I’m worried about it now because I do think we’re moving from ‘This is just happening later’ to ‘This is just not happening. ‘”
Furthermore, he points out that men don’t necessarily choose to give up on these achievements, which they feel they can’t achieve. “The data shows that actually, men, especially, still want to have children, they still want to get married, they still want to start a family. It’s just that for some reason, they can’t do it.”
Click here to learn more about media and cultural reports
“As always, it’s a mix of economics and culture. And that’s fair to a certain extent, you know, especially young people, they feel like they’re not financially where they need to be,” Reeves said, adding said the current gender divide in society has exacerbated the problem.
“One in three men under 30 is not dating. As you just pointed out, 24% of men are still living at home in their 20s.”
Experts then pointed out where to start solving the problem. “We have to improve the economic prospects of young people – that is, if you want to do one thing. So we need to invest more in an education system that works for men,” he said, citing promotion of vocational training, Apprenticeships and fighting the flattening of male wages.
Click here to get the Fox News app
He also said, “We just need to lower the temperature on some of the cultural issues and political issues that I think really cause discord between a lot of young men and young women.”
Pointing to an area of social neglect that compounds the problem, Reeves said: “We have not created a culture where men and women can easily start families, buy homes, start working lives.” .
